#1 Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Story: In a small village in the Shire a young Hobbit named Frodo has been entrusted with an ancient Ring. Now he must embark on an Epic quest to the Cracks of Doom in order to destroy it.
Review: Big, Grand and an Excellent story. Saw it in a bad theater showing it on a 1.85 screen. But the power and scale still came through.
#2 Shrek
Story: A reclusive ogre and a chatterbox donkey go on a quest to rescue a princess for a tyrannical midget lord.
Review: More fun and less dark the Monsters Inc. Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy are a hoot in even in PG form. A true fairy tale with modern twists. I’m sure glad Katzenburg left Disney.
#3 Jurassic Park III
Story: A decidedly odd couple with ulterior motives convince Dr. Alan Grant to go to Isla Sorna (the second InGen dinosaur lab.), resulting in an unexpected landing…and unexpected new inhabitants on the island.
Review: A true monster movie. The even threw in a few scenes the steven couldn’t do back in the day. The Aviary scenes are great. No time to think..just a full on, full screen chase movie.
#4 Spy Kids
Story: The children of secret-agent parents must save them from danger
Review: Great Kids, Great Bad Guys, Great Fun, Great Thumbs. Robert cut back on the style but turned the fun level up to make this great kids movie.
#5 Ocean’s Eleven
Story: Eleven criminal associates plot to rob a string of casinos in Las Vegas.
Review: Ok Plot, Ok camera work, Ok style, Ok remake, Great Actors doing fun things. Cool factor very high.
#6 Monsters, INC
Story: Monsters generate their city’s power by scaring children, but they are terribly afraid themselves of being contaminated by children, so when one enters Monstropolis, top scarer Sully find his world disrupted.
Review: Pixar cannot fail, The come up with unique adaptions of old stories. Make all the characters fun and interesting, then wow us visually. The was a little darker than the other fare from them. But was wonderful none the less
#7 Knight’s Tale
Story: A peasant squire takes up the identity of his master when the knight suffers an untimely demise.
Review: Fun (Xena and Hercules Like) tale of jousters in Ole England. Modern score made it kind of corny, but that was the plan. Heath keeps you interested and the action keeps you hooked.
#8 The Last Castle
Story: A Court Martialed general rallies together 1200 inmates to rise against the system that put him away.
Review: Actors across the board nailed this film. I wanted to know everybody. I liked all the switches and the big battle in the end.
#9 The Mummy Returns
Story: The mummified body of Imhotep is shipped to a museum in London, where he once again wakes and begins his campaign of rage and terror
Review: Like most big sequels, story disappears and everything gets bigger. Rachel kicks ass..and sometimes..thats all you need.
#10 Battle Royale
Story: 42 high school students are forced to kill each other on an uninhabited island.
Review: An amazing film that could not get made here. There was plans to release, then columbine happened. And the release date was pulled. Number one film in Japan. And for good reason. Not the style John Woo, but the commitment was at the same level.